Not a classic episode but a surprisingly powerful one, and very much in line with the stories Trek endeavours to tell. For once, Lwaxana Troi becomes an integral part of what's going on and gets a huge amount of character development. The biggest reason the episode works, though, is David Ogden Stiers who gives a beautiful performance.
I can't help but feel that if this had been an episode of the original series of Star Trek, it would have ended with Kirk and crew convincing the planet of the error of their ways and that they should fall in line with Federation values. This episode goes for a more daring route while giving both sides of the argument a chance to express themselves. While as viewers I'm sure none of us can agree with voluntarily ending your life just because you've reached 60, the episode is well written enough to make it clear that different cultures have their own points of view. Lwaxana wonderfully expresses how ridiculous it is and it's so nice to see Majel Barret be able to show more range at long last.
I wasn't expecting to see Michelle Forbes pop up in a small role, she'll be back again before too long. Really funny opening shot to the episode as well with Picard nervously exiting the turbolift.
@lefthandedguitarist Really insightful summary of why I liked this episode. It definitely was surprisingly emotional because of the controversial topic of euthanasia but without the excellent acting this episode would've fell on it's face.
Review by LeftHandedGuitaristBlockedParent2017-06-18T14:10:10Z
Not a classic episode but a surprisingly powerful one, and very much in line with the stories Trek endeavours to tell. For once, Lwaxana Troi becomes an integral part of what's going on and gets a huge amount of character development. The biggest reason the episode works, though, is David Ogden Stiers who gives a beautiful performance.
I can't help but feel that if this had been an episode of the original series of Star Trek, it would have ended with Kirk and crew convincing the planet of the error of their ways and that they should fall in line with Federation values. This episode goes for a more daring route while giving both sides of the argument a chance to express themselves. While as viewers I'm sure none of us can agree with voluntarily ending your life just because you've reached 60, the episode is well written enough to make it clear that different cultures have their own points of view. Lwaxana wonderfully expresses how ridiculous it is and it's so nice to see Majel Barret be able to show more range at long last.
I wasn't expecting to see Michelle Forbes pop up in a small role, she'll be back again before too long. Really funny opening shot to the episode as well with Picard nervously exiting the turbolift.